Preventing Zoombombing

Starting May 31, you won't be able to connect to meetings with Zoom version 4 or earlier.

To update Zoom on your computer, open the Zoom application, click on your picture (or initials) in the upper right, select Check for Updates, and install any updates when prompted. Zoom version 5 is required after May 30 to improve meeting security. (If your computer is managed by your IT department, they will update Zoom for you.)

Overview

Learn how to prevent and respond to Zoombombing — the disruption of a Zoom class or meeting with messages, imagery, or behavior. (Updated 5/5/20.)

In the Meeting ID section, click the Generate Automatically radio button

Restrict access to join a meeting

By default, participants don't have to be logged in to Zoom to join a meeting. All they need is the link or meeting ID (and password, if you've set one).

To prevent unknown participants from joining meetings, you can choose to restrict meeting participants to people who are logged in to Zoom account, and — if you wish — to people who are currently affiliated with the UO. Restricting Zoom meeting attendance to those affiliated with the UO improves security, especially for large classes and meetings for which waiting rooms are impractical.

Require a meeting password and disable one-click join

Locate Require meeting password. Toggle the slider to on, if necessary. (That is UO's default setting.) You can use the password Zoom generates or choose your own. Participants will be asked to enter this password to join your meeting.

Locate Embed password in meeting link for one-click join. Toggle the slider to off, if necessary.

Mute participants upon entry

Automatically mute all participants when they join your meetings. As the host, you control whether participants can unmute themselves.

Visit uoregon.zoom.us/profile/setting, log in with your Duck ID and password, and select Settings, then Schedule Meeting. Locate Mute participants upon entry, then toggle the slider to on, if necessary.

Enable Waiting Room

The Waiting Room feature allows the host to control when participants join your meeting. As the meeting host, you can admit attendees individually or hold all attendees in the virtual waiting room and admit all when you are ready to begin. Admitting participants from the Waiting Room requires an additional step for the host but provides increased control.

As of March 31, 2020, the Waiting Room should be enabled by default in your UO Zoom account. The April 8 update to the Zoom app also provides meeting hosts with a new Security menu that includes the option to Enable the Waiting Room during the meeting, even if it's not otherwise enabled.

As the host, you can also send a participant to the Waiting Room during a meeting. Click Manage Participants at the bottom of the Zoom window (if the Participants panel is not already visible), then hover over the participant's name, click More, and select Put in waiting room.

Disable "Join Before Host"

If you are scheduling a meeting where sensitive information will be discussed and you don't want participants to start the meeting without you, it's best to disable join before host functionality. Participants will then see a pop-up that says, "Please wait for the host to start this meeting."

If you are the host, there is a login button to log in and start the meeting as the host.

This feature can be enabled or disabled on a per-meeting basis when scheduling.

Disable file transfer

Visit uoregon.zoom.us/profile/setting, log in with your Duck ID and password, and select In Meetings (Basic). Next to File transfer, toggle the slider to off, if necessary.

Disable virtual backgrounds

Virtual backgrounds allow users to obscure their actual background with an image or video. Although they may be welcome when used appropriately, and provide a way for UO community members to show some UO spirit, they can also provide disruptors with a way to display offensive images.

We recommend that you warn meeting participants in advance before you stop allowing virtual backgrounds so they have time to choose and prepare an appropriate setting from which to attend your Zoom meeting.

To prevent meeting participants from using virtual backgrounds, visit uoregon.zoom.us/profile/setting, log in with your Duck ID and password, and select Settings, then In Meetings (Advanced). Next to Virtual background, toggle the slider to off, if necessary.

Lock your meeting

A meeting host or co-host can lock a meeting once all participants have joined. That prevents anyone else from joining the meeting, even if they have the meeting password.

While hosting a meeting: The April 8 update to the Zoom app provides meeting hosts with a new Security menu that lets you allow or disallow participants to Share Screen. If you're not seeing the new Security menu, then click the arrow to the right of the Screen Sharing icon, select Advanced Sharing Options and select All Participants.

In your default settings (applies to all meetings): Visit uoregon.zoom.us/profile/setting, log in with your Duck ID and password, and select Settings, then In Meetings (Basic). Under Screen sharing, under Who can share?,select All Participants.

For UO Students

If you're not seeing the new Security menu and you want to limit sharing privileges while hosting a meeting, then:

Click the up-arrow next to Share Screen.

Select Advanced Sharing Options.

Under Who can share, click Only Host.

Limit chat, renaming, and annotation

Limiting participants' ability to chat in a meeting, rename themselves, and annotate the host’s shared content can reduce the likelihood of unwanted disruptions. To adjust these settings for your account, visit uoregon.zoom.us/profile/setting, log in with your Duck ID and password, and select Settings, then In Meetings (Basic).

Chat allows participants to send a message to everyone in a meeting. Consider toggling the slider to off.

Private chat allows participants to send one-on-one messages to another meeting participant. We recommend toggling the slider to off.

Annotation allows participants to write or draw on content the host is sharing. We recommend toggling the slider to off.

Allow participants to rename themselves. This allows meeting attendees to change the name that appears for them in Zoom. We recommend toggling the slider to off.

Responding to Disruptions

As preparation for possible disruptions, familiarize yourself with Zoom’s settings and features. Make sure you know how to manage participants (start at 3:03 in Zoom's video on Meeting Controls).

We suggest leaving your Manage Participants menu open while hosting a meeting. That way, you can easily see raised hands and, in case of a disruption, quickly access the following options below by hovering over a participant's name: